Match Preview

Newcastle United welcome Tottenham Hotspur to St James’ Park on the final day of the Premier League season, a campaign which could have offered more for both of these sides, who find themselves at either end of the table.

The home supporters will be bitterly disappointed to have been relegated in midweek but will need to be behind their side for the last time in the Premier League for at least a season. They come into this one off the back of their 0-0 draw with fellow relegated side Aston Villa.

Newcastle have nothing to play for here but pride. They need to go out with a strong performance and are capable of doing so, having not lost in their last five. Form has been good but it has come a little too late.

This could be Rafa Benitez’s last game in charge of the club. He has made a positive impact but couldn’t quite steer Newcastle to safety. If the club can tempt him into staying on as manager they stand a great chance of coming straight back up next season.

Tottenham come into this one off the back of their 2-1 home loss to Southampton, a game they were winning, which ended an eight-game unbeaten run and followed the disappointment of officially missing out on the league title a week earlier at Chelsea.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side need to avoid defeat here to secure a second place finish ahead of rivals Arsenal. Although Spurs have missed out on the title, it has been a very impressive season and there is plenty to be excited about for the Lilywhites.

Tottenham need to go out with a win here and look forward to next season. They have a lot to look forward to and can mount another challenge for the title next campaign if they play with the same intensity from start to finish.

Newcastle actually beat Spurs at White Hart Lane in the reverse fixture, coming from behind to win 2-1 thanks to a 90th minute Ayoze Perez goal. However, Spurs have only lost one of their last five trips to Newcastle and will be confident of sealing at least a point.

Team News

Newcastle’s injury woes have overshadowed a gruelling campaign. Tim Krul, Massadio Haidara, Curtis Good, Rob Elliot and Fabricio Coloccini all remain injured as Rafa Benitez prepares to name the club’s final Premier League lineup for at least a season.

Tottenham have just one injury concern as Nabil Bentaleb remains out. Both Mousa Dembele and Dele Alli are suspended and won’t feature. Ryan Mason is expected to partner Eric Dier in midfield again, while Heung Min-Son will hope to keep his place ahead of Nacer Chadli in behind Harry Kane.

Key Points

Newcastle’s last five: W/D/D/W/D

Tottenham’s last five: W/W/D/D/L

Key Stat: Tottenham are unbeaten in 16 of their last 17 away matches in the Premier League.

Key Player: Harry Kane – The Englishman has had a great season and will be battling with fellow countryman Jamie Vardy, as well as Sergio Aguero on the final day for the golden boot. Kane has 25 goals for the season and is ahead of Vardy by one.

Score Prediction

Newcastle 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur – Spurs to sign off with a win and give Newcastle United fans an all too familiar feeling with another loss this season. Both have endured contrasting seasons and the gulf in class is likely to be apparent here.

Match Preview

Newcastle welcome Everton to St James’ Park on Boxing Day as they look to extend their unbeaten streak to four against an Everton side who haven’t won in four in the Premier League.

Having spent a lot of money in the summer on signings like Georginio Wijnaldum, Newcastle shouldn’t be fighting relegation. They currently lie just two points off the drop zone and despite an upturn in results over the past few weeks, more still needs to be done.

However, St James’ Park has always tended to be a tough place to visit and with three wins in their last six in the top flight, Newcastle have relieved some pressure.

They have stuttered of late but have the quality to challenge for Europe, as long as they can get key players back from injuries. But the same could be said for most top-half sides and Everton

The Toffees have won four of their last five meetings with Newcastle in the Premier League but did lose 3-2 in a thriller on December 28 last season.

Team News

Newcastle United will be without Papiss Cisse, Mike Williamson, Jamaal Lascelles, Massadio Haidara, Rolando Aarons, Tim Krul, Gabriel Obertan, Emmanuel Riviere and Steven Taylor who are all out through injury. Aleksander Mitrovic will spearhead the attack in the absence of Cisse.

Everton have Steven Naismith and James McCarthy as doubts, while Tyias Browning, Bryan Oviedo, Phil Jagielka, Tony Hibbert and Steven Pienaar are all out with injuries.

Key Points

Newcastle United’s last five: L/L/W/W/D

Everton’s last five: W/D/D/D/L

Key Stat: Everton have won more points away from home than Newcastle have at home this season.

Key Player: Romelu Lukaku – The powerful Belgian striker is starting to live up to the price tag for the Toffees and is becoming impossible to suppress. Expect him to cause Newcastle problems from the outset.

Score Prediction

Newcastle United 1-2 Everton – Tough one to call as Newcastle have improved recently, but shutting out Everton is not an easy task. The most likely scenario will see goals, and we’re expecting a few of those.

With no win in five, Bournemouth will need to try and stop leaking so many goals as they have managed to concede twelve in their last three matches.

The promoted side had reason for optimism at the start of their campaign but following the injury to star striker Callum Wilson they have struggled with results. They must start picking up points at home to stand a chance of staying in the division.

This is certainly a six-pointer between two teams looking likely to battling relegation. It might only be November but the loser here will be in real trouble.

This will be the first meeting between Bournemouth and Newcastle since January 1992, when the two sides met in FA Cup, with Bournemouth advancing on penalties.

Team News

Bournemouth may be missing Steve Cook and Artur Boruc who both are doubtful. Tyrone Mings, Max Gradel and Callum Wilson are long-term absentees, while Tommy Elphick and Christian Atsu are both also expected to miss the clash.

Score Prediction

Bournemouth 3-1 Newcastle United – Both sides will see this as a chance to get some valuable points, but we see the home side edging it. The game should be open as both aren’t great defensively and goals look likely to fly in.

Match Preview

Newcastle United host Chelsea this weekend in a fixture which has thrown out some surprising results in recent years.

Newcastle have had a poor start to the season, with new manager Steven McClaren struggling to impose his style of play on the Toon.

The Magpies are yet to win a Premier League game and find themselves sitting 19th and are only not propping up the table due to goal difference. Their season needs to pick up, and fast, if they’re to avoid another slog to stay clear of the relegation battle. Newcastle fans will be left disappointed once again after the investment made over the summer.

They come into the game off the back of last weekend’s 2-1 away loss against Watford and, to make things even worse than they could be, they were knocked out of the League Cup in midweek by Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.

Team News

Newcastle have 12 injuries, the highest total in the Premier League. But Steve McClaren could see a number of his players available for selection again for this game. Sylvain Marveaux, Daryl Janmatt, Rolando Aarons, Jack Colback and Cheick Tiote could be in contention to feature. Papiss Cisse, Steven Taylor, Emmanuel Riviera, Paul Dummett and Massaido Haidara are all expect to miss out.

Chelsea are expected to be without just the three players, as Kenedy, Willian and Thibaut Courtios are unavailable. Diego Costa is banned following his actions last weekend against Arsenal so former Newcastle forward Loic Remy could start up top for the champions.

Key Points

Newcastle United’s last five in the Premier League: L/D/L/L/L

Chelsea’s last five in the Premier League: L/WL/L/W

Key Stat: Newcastle have won the last three meetings between the sides at St. James’ Park and have only lost one of the last five in this fixture at home.

Key Player: Eden Hazard – The Chelsea superstar needs to kick on from netting his first goal of the season last weekend against Arsenal and show why he is so highly regarded. He didn’t feature in Chelsea’s midweek win so he should be fresh.

Score Prediction

Newcastle United 2-1 Chelsea – A prediction which may surprise many but given Chelsea’s form against Newcastle away from home it would not be unheard of. Newcastle often manage to kick-start their season with a positive result in this fixture, anything is possible.

Match Preview

The Magpies can feel a little unlucky with their start to the season, but are looking a far more settled club than in the 14/15 campaign and things are certainly on the up. Sitting 17th in the table doesn’t reflect their efforts so far.

They come into the game off the back of a 4-1 midweek win over League Two’s Northampton Town in the League Cup. Florian Thauvin was easily their best performer, being involved in all four goals including scoring one himself. He will be hoping that performance will have earned him a starting place for this one.

Last time out in the league Newcastle picked up a respectable point at Old Trafford against Manchester United, McClaren knows this game will be a test but will be eager for his players to continue working hard and find that first win of the season.

Arsenal have had a slightly slow start to the season and come into this one off the back of Monday nights draw against Liverpool.

Arsene Wenger’s side are looking strong but could still be lacking another signing, with injury woes already this early on in the season Gunners fans will be praying it doesn’t hamper their title chances.

The North London side will feel confident going into the tie given their form against Newcastle in recent years, having won the last seven meetings between the sides in all competitions.

In those last seven meetings Arsenal have scored 20 against Newcastle, if that is anything to go by we could be in for a goal-fest this weekend.

Team News

Newcastle could be without up to three first-team players through injury. Moussa Sissoko looks doubtful, while Emmanuel Riviere and Sylvain Marveaux are set to miss out.

Arsenal have five injury concerns. Centre-backs Laurent Koscielny and Per Mertesacker could miss out, so Wenger may well deploy the same back four which kept Liverpool out on Monday night. Jack Wilshere’s injury saga continues, while Tomas Rosicky and Danny Welbeck are also out.

Key Points

Newcastle United’s last five in the Premier League: D/L/D

Arsenal’s last five in the Premier League: L/W/D

Key Stat: Newcastle have failed to win 13 of their last 14 Premier League games.

Key Player: Petr Cech – Arsenal’s last-line of defence showed why he was such an important signing on Monday night with a spectacular performance, pulling off some world-class saves. If he is in that kind of form for this one Newcastle will find it very hard to put the ball passed him.

Arsenal appear to be lacking a quality holding midfielder and Cabaye could be a perfect addition to the side. Francis Coquelin has been excellent in midfield for the past few months but Cabaye offers something different.

The midfielder possesses the qualities to score goals and is renowned for his set piece speciality, and his wide range of passing from a deep midfield position could be something Arsene Wenger values highly.

Match Preview

The Toon Army are looking likely to finish the campaign in mid-table, unless they can dramatically step up their efforts for European football, whilst Manchester United are currently sitting fourth in what could be the tightest race for the top four in Premier League history.

Before the weekend Newcastle had been without a win in four games, but that win against Aston Villa will give them confidence. Manchester United are in good form and have lost just one in their last six league games.

John Carver recorded his first home victory at the weekend and he needs his side to push on to ensure they have a strong end to the campaign in order to rebuild for next season. Their home form hasn’t been too bad and is the main reason why they’re not finding themselves lower in the table and possibly in the relegation scrap.

The Magpies had put together a run of four consecutive home wins earlier in the season and they will want a positive result against Manchester United tomorrow night, as their next two at home don’t get any easier as Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur travel to Newcastle.

Louis Van Gaal’s side on the road have been a shadow of former Manchester United teams. The fear factor has possibly been eradicated but they have been picking up points, which is the main aim for their run in.

They have the worst away record of all the sides in the top seven and need to start picking up more points away from Old Trafford to ensure they qualify for the Champions League next season.

Having spent big last summer, a lot was expected of this United team, but they have taken a long time to gel. You would be mistaken for thinking they have been poor defensively, having only conceded 26 goals, making them the third best defensive unit in the league.

Draws away from home have been a bit of a problem for United as they have racked up seven so far but will want all three points on Wednesday night.

Team News

Newcastle United: Paul Dummett (knee), Remy Cabella (knee), Cheick Tiote (knee), Rob Elliot (hip), Rolando Aarons (thigh), Siem De Jong (lung) and Steven Taylor (calf) all remain on the sidelines and are unlikely to feature. Yoann Gouffran could return to the starting eleven having been replaced by Gabriel Obertan in the weekend’s victory over Aston Villa.

Manchester United: Robin Van Persie (ankle) looks to be the only definite absentee as Louis Van Gaal has his squad in good shape. Phil Jones (illness) and Luke Shaw (hamstring) missed the win against Sunderland but should return to the squad here. United are likely to remain unchanged after their weekend win and Wayne Rooney will be hoping to maintain his preferred forward position having bagged two in that win on Saturday.

Key Points

Newcastle United’s last five in the Premier League: W/D/D/L/W

Manchester United’s last five in the Premier League: W/D/W/L/W

Key Stat: Goals – These sides have provided entertainment in their last two meetings, scoring eight between them, seven of which were scored by Manchester United.

Key Player: Wayne Rooney – The England captain has endured a relatively difficult season so far and showed in the weekend’s 2-0 win against Sunderland just why people are calling for him to be playing further up the field with two goals.

Score Prediction

Newcastle United 1-2 Manchester United – Louis Van Gaal’s side cannot afford to finish outside the top four this season and should be too strong for Newcastle on Wednesday.